Posted on 09/14/2005 4:32:12 AM PDT by Ellesu
Just before midnight on August 26, three days before Katrina was to make landfall, Kathleen Blanco received a phone call from George Bush. The president had been through a series of briefings from Deputy Chief of Staff Joe Hagin and knew the potential dangers to New Orleans and the surrounding area from a storm the size of Katrina. Now he was attempting to convince the Governor of Louisiana that she needed to take immediate action.
His pleas fell on deaf ears. It seemed that the Governor was more concerned with the legalities of accepting federal assistance, and the appearance that her office could not handle the emergency.
Despite Governor Blanco’s reluctance to coordinate the state’s efforts with federal assistance, President Bush declared a state of emergency for Louisiana two full days before Katrina hit the Louisiana coast. The move allowed FEMA to begin staging relief supplies for immediate distribution in New Orleans once the storm had passed.
The president's emergency declaration also allowed FEMA to coordinate all disaster relief efforts and to provide appropriate assistance in a number of Louisiana parishes. All that was left to do was wait for Kathleen Blanco to request Federal assistance. Under the Emergency Management Assistance Compact, which was revised after 9/11, the Federal Government and FEMA are not allowed to interfere with local operations unless they are authorized by state and local leaders.
Meanwhile Blanco had her own advisors insisting that the President was actually making a request for federal takeover of the Louisiana National Guard, and asking to put Louisiana State Police under federal control. They were concerned that this would be the same as martial law and lead to abuse of power by the federal government.
The next day, August 27, Bush called Blanco again and urged her to order a mandatory evacuation of New Orleans, she refuses.
By August 28, with Katrina less than 24 hours away, Governor Blanco had not made the decision to allow FEMA workers to assist with relief efforts. On this same day, Max Maxfield, the National Hurricane Director, called Mayor Ray Nagin and educated him on the force of nature was bearing down on his city.
He stressed to Nagin that this storm could clean New Orleans off the map. “A storm this size and intensity will destroy the levees in New Orleans, they were not built for this,” he said. Apparently Maxfield made his point, Mayor Nagin issued a mandatory evacuation order for New Orleans on Sunday, August 28.
At 6:44am on August 29, Hurricane Katrina crossed Caprien Bay and slammed into Buras, Louisiana packing winds of 144 miles an hour and pushing a 24 foot wall of water ahead of her. The tidal surge fanned out in a cone ahead of the eye wall. As she crossed the Biloxi Wildlife Management Area and into Lake Borgne, the wall of water entered Lake Ponchartrain and began to affect the levee system of New Orleans.
The eye continued north and made landfall again at the Mississippi/Louisiana border. As Katrina progressed inland the wind shifted, forcing additional pressure on the 17th Street Canal levee.
On the afternoon of August 29, in downtown New Orleans and the French Quarter, the brunt of the high winds had passed. Residents began to peek out and discovered the city was mostly intact. There was wind damage, and some water in the streets, but they had seen this before and weren't concerned. Sometime during the night of the 29th or early morning of the 30th, water began to poor through the 17th Street Canal levee. New Orleans began to flood.
By Tuesday, August 30, the federal relief effort began shipping food, water and medical supplies toward Louisiana for use in New Orleans. The same operation was underway in Mississippi and Alabama. The governors of those states had a already signed on to federal help and relief was pouring in. Governor Blanco was the lone holdout. She had still not made a decision.
The Department of Defense sent search and rescue experts, doctors, nurses and support personnel. FEMA was there to help as much as they could but local and state officials would not allow them to participate because Governor Blanco still had not given her permission .
Residents of New Orleans watched as the flood waters continued to poor through the breach in the 17th Street Canal levee and by Wednesday their frustration began to boil. The summer sun baked survivors on rooftops. Those who made it to the Superdome were now wandering through the gutted building, waiting for relief supplies and help which never came. Mayor Ray Nagin cursed everyone who failed to move fast enough, but Kathleen Blanco toured the stricken city in a helicopter while she conducted a news interview for CBS. On the ground, state officials were struggling with the magnitude of the disaster, but were rapidly being overwhelmed.
Federal officials were on standby, ready to move, but Governor Blanco had still mot made a decision to ask for federal help.
That evening, Blanco watched as reports of rapes and looting poured into the command center. National news agencies began to run video of looters breaking into stores and making off with garbage bags of goods. One policeman was shot in the head.
Other rescue workers reported hearing bullets zinging around them as they tried to save lives. New Orleans was out of control, and the media was wondering who was in charge.
On Thursday, September 1, amid a growing clamor of questions about the lack of action being taken in New Orleans, Blanco finally signed Executive Order KBB-2005-23, giving permission for the federal government to enter Louisiana with military assistance.
FEMA began to move supplies into the stricken parishes along the path of Katrina. The Red Cross was finally given permission to deliver the food and water it had stockpiled in the area. Lt. General Russel Honore arrived and began to take command of the military assets which were already in place. As he barked orders, things began to happen, rapidly. Mayor Ray Nagin said, "He came off the doggone chopper, and he started cussing and people started moving.” Nagin called Gen Honore a “John Wayne kind of dude!”
In the first 12 hours after Governor Blanco relinquished control of the rescue and relief effort in New Orleans, military helicopters flew more rescue missions than in the previous three days. Un-official count of those taken out of the flooded city topped 10,000.
By Friday September 2, the federal relief effort was in full swing. Gen. Honore was now totally in charge and the effects of a firm leader were evident. A convoy of about 50 military vehicles arrived at the Convention Center where 7,000 storm survivors had waited for 4 days without food or water. When the convoy arrived military police quickly took charge and began to assist the survivors. State officials had halted the evacuations from two New Orleans hospitals, however, under Gen Honore’s command, the Army and National Guard began ferrying the injured and sick to safety.
State Police, along with Military Police and other federal law enforcement agencies began restoring order. President Bush visited command posts in Alabama, Mississippi and Louisiana to personally make sure that everything that could be done, was being done. When he returned to Washington on the evening of September 2, he signed a temporary spending bill directing 10.2 billion dollars in aid be sent to Katrina affected states. The situation was beginning to improve.
When the sick and injured are evacuated, the looters arrested, and the water drained, New Orleans will begin the enormous task of clean up and reconstruction. Already there are those in Congress who recognize that Louisiana has a reputation for being the most corrupt state in the country. They are strongly advocating that any federal money sent to Louisiana NOT be put into the hands of Louisiana officials.
Rep. Tom Tancredo suggested that all federal money be funneled through a House Committee. “Given the long history of political corruption in Louisiana, I am not confident that Louisiana officials can be trusted to administer federal relief aid.”
Currently, three officials with Louisiana State Office of Emergency Preparedness are under indictment for mis-handling of 30 million dollars in FEMA funds. In typical Louisiana fashion, Mark Smith of the Louisiana Homeland Security office said, “Really, it’s not that the money was misspent here or misspent there...it’s just a case of improper paperwork.”
Justice Department officials have said that 30 million dollars is a lot of misfiled forms. Reports state the money was spent on professional dues, up-scale leather briefcases, large screen T.V.s, stereo equipment, and a trip to Germany.
As coastal Louisiana begins to recover from this disaster, the voters in Louisiana are beginning to re-evaluate their choice of leaders. The voices for change in a state that has been called the nations only “banana republic” are growing louder. They vow to rebuild, both their beloved New Orleans and the political system that failed her.
There is also a KBB exec order that suspends certain regulations pertaining to commercial vehicles.
The suspension of bonding to be admitted into LA law enforcement has no relevance whatsoever to a request from the governor for National Guard or active-duty military assistance.
I'm not saying she wasn't part of the problem, only that the KBB executive orders are not the place to be looking for timing of National Guard requests, exercizing of inter-state National Guard compacts and the like.
Meanwhile Blanco had her own advisors insisting that the President was actually making a request for federal takeover of the Louisiana National Guard, and asking to put Louisiana State Police under federal control. They were concerned that this would be the same as martial law and lead to abuse of power by the federal government.There is no way that President Bush would have been seeking to federalize activity in Louisiana on August 26th. The auther misreads a WaPo article of September 4th, that describes a meeting between Blanco and Bush on a Friday - many readers misinterpret the article as saying the meeting was on Friday AUgust 26, when in fact, the meeting referred to was on Friday, September 2nd.The next day, August 27 ...
Behind the scenes, a power struggle emerged, as federal officials tried to wrest authority from Louisiana Gov. Kathleen Babineaux Blanco (D). Shortly before midnight Friday, the Bush administration sent her a proposed legal memorandum asking her to request a federal takeover of the evacuation of New Orleans, a source within the state's emergency operations center said Saturday.The administration sought unified control over all local police and state National Guard units reporting to the governor. Louisiana officials rejected the request after talks throughout the night, concerned that such a move would be comparable to a federal declaration of martial law. ...
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/09/03/AR2005090301680.html
Under the Emergency Management Assistance Compact, which was revised after 9/11, the Federal Government and FEMA are not allowed to interfere with local operations unless they are authorized by state and local leaders.I agree that obtaining Federal Assistance depends on a state asking for it (See Stafford Act, 42 USC; and the regulations that flow from it, i.e. FEMA rules at 44 CFR), but the author is saying the Emergency Management Assistance Compact is what governs this relationship. It does not.
EMAC, the Emergency Management Assistance Compact, is a congressionally ratified organization that provides form and structure to interstate mutual aid. Through EMAC, a disaster impacted state can request and receive assistance from other member states quickly and efficiently, resolving two key issues upfront: liability and reimbursement.
Here is another, the author says "By Tuesday, August 30, the federal relief effort began shipping food, water and medical supplies toward Louisiana for use in New Orleans," yet it is evident from news accounts that relief supplies were prepositioned INSIDE Louisiana before Katrina made landfall.
Here is one that is indefinite ...
The Department of Defense sent search and rescue experts, doctors, nurses and support personnel. FEMA was there to help as much as they could but local and state officials would not allow them to participate because Governor Blanco still had not given her permission.
The phrase "would not allow them to participate" is indefinite. Participate in what, exactly? FEMA was working, obtaing damage assessments, order repositioning of supplies, starting the process of coordinating outside resources, etc.
I do know that the Red Cross and other FEMA-driven agencies were denied permission to enter NOLA, by state and local authorities, because the thugs were active and because Blanco figured starving the people would encourage them to leave. The author should have been more specific here.
Anyway, the article simply paints a grossly inaccurate picture of the way Blanco mismanaged the situation. It fails to separate asking for $$ from ceding control of a rescue and relief effort. It asserts that KBB 2005-23 is somehow the device that "turned a switch" between FEMA/federal inaction and action. In the first place, there is no single "switch" of that nature. The governor's requests for assistance must be precise. And in the scond place, as noted above, KBB 2005-23 has absolutely nothing to do with the relationship between LA and federal assistance.
Like I said, there are some facts in the article, but as a whole, it needs to be taken with a pound of salt.
Thank you. I asked you to refute, and you stepped up to do so.
The TV News Stars will broadcast a small story about this in about 10 years.
It does get repetetive though. A similar article was posted about 5 days ago. Lots of "crap" flying around here, not that it'a unusual. I fully expect a number of readers to find the top of this thread and never read through it to find any refutation or contrary citation.
Most of the time, when I see articles and posts with false assertions, I just move on without saying a word. It's much easier than making a correction.
Emergency Management Assistance Compact ( www.emacweb.org ) was set up by Congress. Katrina Blame-finding Bloggers ought to study this site. You'll probably be quite a few steps ahead of the MSM, which is still focused on sending emergency Kleenex to Governor Blank-Oh.
(Emergency Management Assistance Compact, set up by Congress, which governs these issues.)
This letter to the Regional Director dated August 28, 2005 is a request a total of $130,000.000 for Special Need Shelters, Hospital shelters, generators, support staff for shelters and the following:
1) Louisiana State Police (LSP) Costs to support evacuations -$500,000 for a direct landfall
2) Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries(WLF)-Cost to support evacuations -$500,000
3)Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development (DOTD) –Cost to Support evacuations -$5,000,000
Nowhere in this letter is it stated that she requesting FEMA to be directly and physically involved. To put bluntly the letter says we will take care of it, you send us the money.
My co-workers at school are saying Bush didn't provide federal aid quickly enough. They point to this and I'm getting confused:
http://www.gov.state.la.us/Press_Release_detail.asp?id=976
What is the Stafford Act? It sounds like she asked for federal aid and no mentioning of federal troops. Did Blanco mistakenly thought Federal Aid included the Federal Troops too?
I'm counting on you being right !
bump
WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 31
Morning
My Way News reports an additional 700 National Guardsmen from TX, OH, and OK are deployed in LA. Revised 9/6
“Early Aug. 31, an MC-130P Combat Shadow from Hurlburt’s 16th Special Operations Squadron flew a team of combat controllers to the New Orleans airport to set up lights which would allow reopening the runway for nighttime operations. The airport has no electrical power.” Revised 9/6
Governor Blanco called for a total evacuation of the city of New Orleans.
In an interview on Good Morning America, the Governor said “We’ve sent buses in. We will be either loading them by boat, helicopter, anything that is necessary.”
When asked about looting the Governor said “We don’t like looters one bit, but first and foremost is search and rescue.”
Blanco said she wanted the Superdome — which had become a shelter of last resort for about 20,000 people — evacuated within two days, along with other gathering points for storm refugees. The situation inside the dank and sweltering Superdome was becoming desperate: The water was rising, the air conditioning was out, toilets were broken, and tempers were rising.
Governor Blanco asks the President to send federal troops to conduct law enforcement activities.
At 10:00 AM TP reports that a spokesperson for the Texas Governors office says refugees from the Superdome will be put up in the Astrodome:
FEMA is providing 475 buses for the convoy and the Astrodome’s schedule has been cleared through December for housing evacuees, a spokeswoman for Texas Gov. Rick Perry said.
http://rightwingnuthouse.com/archives/2005/09/04/katrina-response-timeline/
Have you seen this video? CNN camera catches her admitting she should have requested federal troops sooner.
September 12, 2005
Blanco Screws Up With Troops - Proof on Camera! (VIDEO)
Hat tip: Reader LadyCop
There is a shot where Blanco is being set up several days ago for a TV interview, and her press secretary is helping her adjust her mic. They’re having a personal conversation, but the cameraman catches it!! In it, she kinda jokes to her press secretary something like “yeah, well I guess I really need to ask for troops,” and a couple more things she says.
A bit later in the segment she gets into a semi-argument with Miles O’Brien, and he’s pointedly asking her exactly WHEN she asked the President for troops.
She gets frustrated and says she didn’t even know what day it was the, she was confused, but Miles presses her.
DOWNLOAD and view video here.
http://thepoliticalteen.net/2005/09/12/blancocnndaybreak/
She is an incompetent moron who doesn't have a clue
Thanks for the link to that video
bump
Do I need to rebut some of the false claims twice?
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